My profile of the very cool, community-oriented neighborhood of Mount Rainier in Prince George’s County for Urban Turf is just out. I wandered around while Tim got to take his grandfather’s bikes to the co-op and work on them. Nice deal on that end. Things of note: The sweet potato cupcakes at Delectable Cakery are fabulous, as is hanging out with the owner of the antique shop on the corner of Route 1 and 34th street. He’s a hoot. An excerpt:

There’s no one way to describe Mount Rainier.

“It’s a group of well-educated, politically-minded, middle class people, both elderly and young,” said Vincent Philips, a partner in local bakeshop Delectable Cakery.

“It’s a socially aware community, with an anti-war contingent, strong GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender) presence, and a simple living element,” says P.J. Park, who co-founded the neighborhood’s bike co-op.

“Takoma Park at half the price and twice the diversity,” writes one local blogger, perhaps most succinctly.

Given that the tight-knit century-old community boasts an arts district, a food co-op, an active e-mail listserv and even a silo full of corn used to heat homes, perhaps it would best be described as Park Slope, Brooklyn meets Ames, Iowa. However, nowhere in Park Slope are you going to find as affordable homes as you will in Mount Rainier.

[Read the rest of the story here]

My new post up on UrbanTurf.com is about the frustrations of not having cell phone service in your apartment, and asks whether management companies should disclose information about the availability of phone service in their listings.

[Can You Hear Me Now?]